Friday, August 26, 2005

21 'Av 5765/26 August 2005: Women's Equality/Right to Vote Day

Greetings.

Today’s quasi-holiday commemorates, to quote Odd Holidays, “the 1920 passage of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, granting women the right to vote.” Voting rights for women was a big political issue at the time, and like all big issues, it attracted not only people who seriously believed in it, but also many people wishing to exploit it for personal gain. The latter were parodied in today’s weird thing, L. Frank Baum’s The Marvelous Land of Oz. Baum was the son-in-law of women’s rights actvist Matilda Joslyn Gage, so he was familiar with the movement; how the plot is resolved reflects a significant feminist influence.

Note: It is recommended that one read The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, to which The Marvelous Land of Oz, first. Those relying on the 1939 MGM movie may be needlessly confused on details.